How it Works

Here’s an overview of the 30-minute routine, and click ahead for descriptions of each exercise.

1. Warm up for eight minutes. You can do whatever you like to get your heart rate up. Do some jumping jacks, jog in place or dance to your favorite song.
2. Do one minute of jungle squats. (Lower body)
3. Do one minute of push ups. (Upper body)
4. Do one minute of reverse V lunges. (Lower body)
5. Do one minute of modified chair dips. (Upper body)
6. Do two minutes of cardio. (Whole body)
7. Do one minute of abs exercises. (Whole body)
8. Take a 30 second break.

Repeat steps 2 through 8, three times.

Jungle Squat: Tone Your Thighs and Butt

How to do it: Start out in a basic squat position, making sure your knees are not extending beyond your toes and with weight distributed evenly on your heels. Pivot to the right 90 degrees on left foot while maintaining the squat position. Pivot back to starting point, staying in squat position and then pivot to the left 90 degrees on right foot. Pivot back to starting point and come out of squat position. While standing up, do not lock your knees. This is one Jungle Squat; repeat for one minute.

Tip: Be sure to keep core engaged and back straight the whole time.

Push Up: Tone Your Arms

Push Ups

What you’re working: Pectorals, deltoids, triceps and traps, while core keeps you stable with correct form.

How to do it: This is a modified pushup, but you can’t cheat and use your knees! Try it on the floor first, starting in plank position and lowering yourself down. Be sure to keep the lower body in alignment with upper body, being careful not to arch your back either way. Lower your body to about fist height off floor and then push yourself back up to plank position. Quality over quantity is the name of this game. Continue for one minute.

Tip: For a modification, do an elevated push up using either a chair, bed, bench, bar or other object that will hold your weight and not cause you to fall. Use the same form you would use on the floor, maintaining that good body position.

Reverse V Lunges: Sculpt Your Legs

How to do it: Starting from the standing position, lunge backward at a 45-degree angle to the right, making sure your left knee does not extend over your foot. Explode from that lunge position back to the standing position. With only enough time to regain balance, lunge right back down, on the left side, going backward in another 45-degree angle. Explode back from lunge to standing postion to complete one repetition; repeat for one minute.

Modified Chair Dips: Tone Those Triceps

How to do it: Firmly grip a chair, table or any firm object that will support your weight. Fingers should be facing your back and your knees should be bent with feet shoulder width apart and flat on the ground. Lower yourself until your arms are bent at 90-degree angle and then push yourself back till arms are straight again. Repeat for one minute.

Tip: To make this more difficult you can straighten your legs and even raise one leg at a time while you continue to dip.

Cardio Time: Burn Some Serious Calories

Cardio Time

What you’re working: The whole body is engaged in this exercise.

How to do it: With feet shoulder-width apart, perform a squat, place hands on ground and thrust both legs back at the same time until you are in full plank position. While maintaining the plank position, move your hands and feet sideways at the same time for a count of three. From the plank position, perform six mountain climbers (in push up position, move your feet back and forth rapidly). Using your core, bring your legs back up to a squat position with feet shoulder-width apart and stand back up. This completes one repetition.

Tip: To modify you can step back to plank position and step back up at end of rotation. You can also remove the lateral movement if this is too difficult, however you eventually want to work your way up to include this in the exercise.

Lateral Jumps: Get Those Quads Burning

Lateral Jumps

What you’re working: The whole body is engaged in this exercise.

How to do it: Starting from the standing position with feet a little wider than shoulder-width, squat down and touch the floor. Explode into a lateral jump moving to the right. As you jump, reach your hands above yourself. Land with legs apart and go right into the squat position again, squatting down and touching the floor. Explode back up jumping to the left and landing softly again. Repeat for two minutes.

Tip: To decrease intensity, replace the lateral jump with a lateral step. Also, if you cannot touch the floor without placing too much strain on your knees, simply go as deep as you can, reaching straight down with your arms.

Inch Worms: Get Killer Abs

Inch Worms

What you’re working: Obliques, hip flexors and other muscles are engaged to maintain stabilization as you move through this exercise.

How to do it: Starting from plank position like you are going to do a pushup, walk your feet towards your hands in baby steps. Once you get to the point when you have to start bending your legs, start walking your hands forward in baby steps until you are back in the plank position. Repeat for one minute.

Tip: Go nice and slow. Controlled movements will keep your core engaged throughout and you’ll get a better burn. Also, keep your head in alignment with your back.

INGREDIENTS:

3/4 Cup Strawberries, finely diced

3/4 Cup Mangos, finely diced

1/4 Cup Red Onion, finely chopped

6 Basil Leaves, finely chopped

1 TBSP Fresh Lemon Juice

1/4 tsp. Sea Salt

1/4 tsp. Black Pepper

DIRECTIONS:

Combine all ingredients and mix, or simply later ingredients in a bowl. Tastes even better after it sits for a few hours. Salsa should stay fresh in the fridge (in a sealed container) for about one week.

Through her Boston-based business, Breathe into Balance, “transformational consultant” Kelly Larson helps clients make life changes using yoga, meditation, and yogic breathing techniques, along with spiritual guidance if they so choose.

Here, she demonstrates a yoga routine based on postures that have been shown to help stabilize mood: A 2004 pilot study from UCLA examined how three types of postures — standing, forward bends, and back bends — affected mood in adults. The findings suggest that yoga, particularly back bends, increased confidence and decreased negativity.

Larson suggests repeating this 20- to 30-minute routine twice a week, taking time to breathe into each pose and to relax at the end.

Shredded leftover turkey tops homemade tostadas in this Tex-Mex favorite. Making your own tostada shells from fresh corn tortillas is easier than you might think—crisp them up in the oven while you prepare the toppings. Choose either regular petite diced tomatoes or those with added jalapeños, depending on your inclination for spicy food. Serve with black beans, rice and extra salsa or hot sauce on the side.

PREPARATION

Position racks in the upper and lower thirds of the oven; preheat to 375°F.

Bring tomatoes and their juice to a boil in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Add onion and cook, stirring occasionally, until the onion is soft and most of the liquid has evaporated, 15 to 20 minutes. Add turkey (or chicken) and cook until heated through, 1 to 2 minutes.

Meanwhile, coat tortillas on both sides with cooking spray. Divide the tortillas between 2 large baking sheets. Bake, turning once, until crisped and lightly brown, about 10 minutes.

Mash avocado in a bowl. Stir in salsa, sour cream and cilantro until combined.

To assemble tostadas, spread each crisped tortilla with some of the avocado mixture. Top with the turkey (or chicken) mixture, lettuce and cheese.

TIPS & NOTES

Tip: To poach chicken breasts, place boneless, skinless chicken breasts in a medium skillet or saucepan. Add lightly salted water to cover and bring to a boil. Cover, reduce heat to low and simmer gently until chicken is cooked through and no longer pink in the middle, 10 to 12 minutes.

Indian-Spiced Chicken Pitas

333 calories

Make a perfect summer supper: grill spice-rubbed chicken breasts and tuck them into whole-wheat pitas along with fresh vegetables and a tangy yogurt sauce. To round out your 500-calorie meal, serve with one from each group: